Box 8H Fragmentation of landscapes in Germany

Based on data of the location of different categories of motorways and railways, the German federal agency for nature conservation and landscape ecology studied the changes between 1977 and 1987 in the number of undissected areas larger than 100 km2 (containing no tracks or roads or only those with low traffic frequency) considered as a resource for low-intensity recreation (nature-walks, relaxation, etc) (Lassen, 1990). The exercise showed that there had been an 18 per cent decline in such areas in this period in West Germany. In 1977 there were 349 undissected areas (56 184 km2), while in 1987 these had dropped to 296, covering 45 876 km2. Map 8.3 illustrates the findings for a section of southern Germany, where the decrease for the Federal State of Bavaria was 15 per cent (4198 km2) and for the Federal State of Baden-Württemberg 20 per cent (1098 km2).

A comparison of these findings with the distribution of landscape protection areas in both federal states shows that Baden-Württemberg's protected areas are located in regions where no undissected areas larger than 100 km2 exist. Bavaria, on the other hand, has not only more such undissected areas, but also a higher congruence between these areas and landscape protection zones. Such an analysis could be one method of assessing the quality of protected areas for recreational purposes. A follow-up study, however, has demonstrated the difficulties of such analyses and the need for standard assessment criteria (Netz, 1990). Using criteria such as scenic value of a landscape and the quality of hiking-routes, a deeper evaluation was made of the 296 remaining undissected areas identified in 1987. This demonstrated that more than 75 per cent of Baden-Württemberg's undissected areas have relatively high qualities for recreation compared with only 50 per cent for Bavaria.


Map 8.3 - Undissected areas (larger than 100 km2) of low traffic frequency as a resource for low-intensity recreation, 1977 and 1987, in southern Germany.

Source: Federal agency for nature conservation, Bonn